Chrismukkah With The Cohens
by millstone1005
Summary: A few missing Cohens plus 1 scenes from 3.10 'The Chrismukkah Bar-Mitzvahkkah'.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Chrismukkah With The Cohens  
**Disclaimer:** I own nothing related to _The O.C._. Not for profit.  
**Description:** A few missing Cohens+1 scenes from 3.10 _The Chrismukkah Bar Mitz-vahkkah._

**Author's Note:** (Aug 2006) The text of this chapter has been somewhat modified since it was originally posted in Dec 2005, and it has now been beta-read by **fredsmith518**. But the bulk of the chapter is the same as before.

* * *

**Chapter 1**

Kirsten smiled as she finished setting the table and then called the boys to dinner. Chrismukkah was coming up, and she and Sandy had something to talk to Ryan and Seth about.

Once they were all seated and had started eating, Kirsten looked to Sandy, who smiled at her, then looked over at each of the boys.

"Okay, guys, we have to decide who's going to go and pick out the tree this year. I know that your mother and I usually do it, but..." Sandy looked specifically at Ryan. "Ryan, since you and Kirsten did it last year, I was thinking that you and I could do it this year. What do you say?"

Kirsten watched Ryan with interest. She and Sandy had already talked this over. He had told her how he felt a little guilty about his "bah, humbug" attitude last year, due to her father's legal problems that he had been dealing with at the time. And she herself was already feeling sad about this being the last holiday season with the boys in the house and just wanted to spend as much time with them as possible while she could. And Sandy felt the same way.

The way they figured it, Sandy and Ryan picking out the tree together would give them a chance to have a little one-on-one time. And while they were out, she could have some one-on-one time with Seth, putting up the stockings and the menorahs and such. She and Sandy planned to switch later, at some point, for some one-on-one time with the other boy.

Kirsten was glad to see Ryan nodding in agreement with Sandy's suggestion. It looked like he was about to say _sure_, but before he had a chance to actually say anything, Seth spoke up.

"Actually, Dad, I was thinking that Ryan and I could do it this year."

Kirsten could practically feel her jaw drop. She exchanged a couple of incredulous, amused looks with Sandy and Ryan. Sandy was the first to recover from the shock.

He cleared his throat. "Son, are you telling me that you are actually _volunteering_ to do manual labor?"

Kirsten chimed in, with a big smile. "I can't believe it."

As did Ryan, looking amused. "It's a Chrismukkah miracle."

Seth gave them all dirty looks. "It's just... I went with Summer to pick out the Roberts' tree last year, and... she's just so good at it... I mean, I already asked her and she said _yes_ and I thought that... you know... me and Ryan and Summer and Marissa could all go, make a day of it..."

Kirsten put her hand on her son's arm to stop his rambling, and smiled at him softly. "That's fine, Seth. We were just teasing you."

She was happy when the others chimed in, "Yeah."

Kirsten could see her son breathe a sigh of relief and then smile first at her, then at the rest of the family, who all smiled back.

"Yeah? Great. Great." He turned to Ryan. "Hey, man, we'll have to leave early. Summer says all the best trees go quickly, so we'll have to get there like right when they open."

Ryan gave him an indulgent smile. "Sure."

Kirsten watched her boys discuss the details of their excursion. She and Sandy exchanged a look and a shrug. Well, there was always plenty of time for one-on-ones later.

* * *

A few days later, Kirsten joined Sandy in seeing Seth and Ryan off. The boys were up early and were all ready to go pick up the girls right after breakfast. 

"Now, remember, don't get a tree too tall, or it won't fit under the ceiling. Remember, there has to be room to put the star on top."

"We'll remember."

"Seth, go ahead and use your emergency credit card, but don't go over the limit we agreed on."

"I know."

"Do you guys have rope in the Rover to tie the tree to the top of the car?"

"Yes, Sandy, I put it in there myself yesterday."

"Get the guys at the tree lot to help you."

Seth finally got fed up when they were half way out the door. "Mom, Dad, we have to go. Summer and Marissa are waiting for us. We have everything under control. Really."

Kirsten stopped with Sandy at the front door. They each put their arm around the other's waist and watched their boys getting into the SUV, waving as they drove off.

"Good luck! Have fun!"

"Call if you're going to be late!"

"Yes, Mom!"

And then they were gone.

Kirsten sighed and gave her husband a brief, sad smile and a brief hug.

"Honey, I was going to go surfing, if that's okay..."

"Yeah, that's fine. I was just going to get the Chrismukkah stuff out."

"You sure? I can help you..."

"No, no. You go ahead. You can help when you get back."

Sandy gave Kirsten a kiss. "Okay. I'll be back soon. Love you."

"Love you, too."

After Sandy headed off to their bedroom to change into his surfing clothes, Kirsten took a quick look around at the bare living room, which wasn't going to be bare for much longer. She sighed, then headed for the spare room upstairs where they kept the Chrismukkah decorations.

* * *

It was well into the afternoon by the time Kirsten heard the Range Rover pull into the driveway. When she heard it, she got up from where she was sitting on the living room floor, taking decorations out of boxes. She had been hoping that the boys would have gotten back while she was out visiting Julie, since Seth had called a few hours before that to say that they'd be a few hours more. But she wasn't really surprised that it took longer than Seth had indicated. 

"Sandy! The kids are back!"

Kirsten walked over to the front door and opened both sides to make sure there was enough room for the tree to get through.

When she looked out at the Rover, she saw the tree tied to the top. She tilted her head to the side to try and see it better. It looked pretty good, as far as she could tell. The boys did a good job, for their first time out by themselves. Kirsten smiled a little to herself. Or, well, maybe Summer was to thank for that.

After a moment, the kids got out of the car. To her surprise, only Ryan and Marissa emerged.

"Hey."

"Hey. Where's Seth and Summer?"

"We dropped them off at Summer's."

As Kirsten was nodding her understanding, Sandy came up behind her, planting a kiss on her cheek as he went past.

On his way down the stairs, he gestured at the tree. "Hey, kid. Let me help you with that."

Ryan nodded, and he and Sandy started to work on getting the big tree untied and off the roof.

Kirsten caught Marissa's eye. "Let's leave the guys to it. Have you eaten?"

"Yeah, we stopped at the diner."

"Come on in. How about some eggnog?"

Marissa smiled, and after a quick glance at Ryan, followed Kirsten inside. "Sounds good."

The two women got their eggnog and settled in on the living room couch, after pushing a few boxes out of the way. As Kirsten watched the two men struggle to get the tree inside, she had a feeling that Marissa wanted to tell her something. She fiddled with her glass nervously and a couple of times looked over at her. Kirsten had to hold herself back from asking Marissa what she wanted to say, preferring to let her come to it on her own time.

Finally, it seemed the girl got up her nerve. "Um, Kirsten?"

"Yes, sweetie?"

"While we were at the tree lot..."

"Yes?"

Marissa took a deep breath. "Look, I just... I wanted to get a tree for my friend Johnny, because they didn't have one, and it was just a little one, you know, a table-top one, because his mom said that they don't have enough room for a big one, and anyway Seth put it on his credit card with your tree, and I'll pay you back –"

Kirsten smiled gently at the flustered girl and patted her leg. "Don't worry about it, Marissa. It's our treat. Don't give it another thought."

Marissa smiled back in relief. "Thanks."

Kirsten watched Marissa for a moment. Poor girl. With all her family troubles: no money, her father off with his boat who knew where, her mother living in a trailer (although she didn't know that). Kirsten felt it was the least she could do to help her out financially. After all, she was family, sort of. And Marissa was trying to help her friend. Good for her. Kirsten still hoped that Julie would come around and spend some time with her daughter during the holidays. It would be good for both of them.

* * *

A couple of hours later, Kirsten dropped onto one of the living room couches, exhausted. She couldn't believe she was so tired already, and there was still a lot of decorating left to do. 

Sandy joined her on the couch. "Tired?"

"Yeah." Kirsten leaned into him, and he put his arm around her shoulder.

Kirsten relaxed in her husband's arms and looked around at all they'd been able to accomplish. After the men had gotten the tree in and set up on the tree stand, the four of them – Kirsten, Sandy, Ryan, and Marissa – had spent some time decorating it and the rest of the living room. Kirsten smiled to herself. It was nice, working together as a family, although it was too bad that Seth and Summer couldn't have joined them. They had laughed and had a good time.

Too soon, though, Ryan and Marissa had gone on their way to visit their friend Johnny and then hook up with Seth and Summer for dinner.

After a moment's quiet, Sandy offered, "Why don't we hang it up for tonight? We can do the kitchen and stuff tomorrow."

Kirsten gave her husband a tired smile. "Sounds good."

"This was nice, huh?"

"Mmm."

"And, just think, we have the whole house to ourselves for the rest of the day..."

Kirsten looked up and found Sandy grinning down at her. He wiggled his eyebrows in a suggestive manner and she laughed. Then he leaned over and kissed her. Kirsten snuggled a little bit more into him, and he tightened his arms around her. Maybe this Chrismukkah wouldn't be so bad after all.

* * *

TBC 


	2. Chapter 2

**Title:** Chrismukkah With The Cohens  
**Disclaimer:** I own nothing related to _The O.C._. Not for profit.  
**Description:** A few missing Cohens+1 scenes from 3.10 _The Chrismukkah Bar Mitz-vahkkah.  
_**Beta Reader:**fredsmith518_  
_

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Kirsten was in the kitchen with Sandy, putting up Chrismukkah decorations, when she paused for a minute to watch the kids in the back yard. The four of them were out there around the pool having some kind of intense conversation. Some kind of _private_ intense conversation. Marissa and Summer had arrived a little earlier for a late breakfast, and then they and the boys had moved quickly out to the patio to have their apparently very important talk.

When Kirsten saw Ryan dip the pool skimmer into the pool, she smiled to herself and shook her head a little in amusement. He had picked up that pool skimmer when she had gone out there earlier to put out a few more poinsettias. They had all tried to pretend that they hadn't immediately stopped talking as soon as they had seen her. Ryan had started cleaning the pool, Marissa had concentrated on eating her cereal, Summer had studied her nails, and Seth had feigned a deep interest in his coffee. And none of them had said a word until she was back inside.

It was all too funny. She wondered what was so important, and confidential. Kirsten shrugged to herself and rejoined her husband in the decorating. They'd probably find out soon enough. Their son could never keep a secret. And she was right. In a few minutes, right after the girls left, Ryan and Seth came into the kitchen, and Seth announced that he wanted Ryan to have a Bar Mitzvah.

Oh, boy.

_"A Bar Mitzvah? For Ryan?"_

_"Ooh... It just makes me feel all tingly hearing you say it."_

_"Do you have any idea how offensive this is?"_

_"We're not trying to offend, just... help."_

_"Well, you gotta be Jewish to be Bar Mitzvah'ed. Let's just start there."_

_"Why are you guys doing this?"_

_"Our friend Johnny. He can't afford knee surgery. It's like a fundraiser."_

_"Which is where we need you, Mom."_

_"It's a sacred religious event. A tradition that marks a Jewish child's obligation to observe the Ten Commandments."_

_"I'm sorry. And that's the problem with the Jews right there. We have no concept of marketing."_

_"You're on thin ice."_

_"Now, listen to me. A long time ago, Mom's team allowed Christmas to be about reindeers, and snowmen, and Tim Allen movies. And I would say that that's a pretty religious holiday."_

_"The birth of Christ? I'd say so."_

_"You betcha. Well now the Bar Mitzvah is our greatest export possibility. It's got huge crossover potential."_

_"It's an honorary Bar Mitzvah."_

_"It's a Chrismukkah Bar-Mitzvahkkah."_

_"I like it... and they're helping their friend."_

_"But, we need your blessing."_

_"That's right."_

_"The club is throwing a holiday party, anyway. We'll hijack it. We'll just tell the Newpsies that we're raising money for the hospital. Sandy, it could be really fun."_

_"It's honorary?"_

_"Hey."_

_"Minimal__ Hebrew."_

_"Which I'm fine with."_

_"No tallis, no challah, no tefillin."_

_"Hey, as long as people are dancing to YMCA and handing over envelopes of cash, we're in."_

_"Then so are we."_

_"Mazal Tov, buddy!"_

Once that was settled, Kirsten smiled and looked around at her men for a moment. This was going to be fun. And a lot of work. She clapped her hands once to get everyone's attention.

"Okay, guys. If we're going to do this thing, we have a lot to do. The country club's holiday party is _tomorrow_."

That got an immediate response, the three of them talking all at once.

"Honey, I don't know..."

"Mom..."

"I can't learn everything by then..."

Kirsten put up her hands to silence them all. "We can do this. We just have to work together and get organized. Seth, now, what was it you had in mind? A Chrismukkah Bar Mitzvakkah? Is that right?"

Kirsten listened intently while Seth explained his idea and Ryan gave more information about their friend Johnny and the surgery he needed. By the end of it, Sandy was shaking his head.

"Sorry, guys, that's not going to work."

Seth was aghast. "What? Dad –"

Sandy put up his hands. "Seth, I just meant, because it isn't a real Bar Mitzvah, and the guests are all going to be gentiles, and they're not going to know to give money to Ryan, and I'm not sure they'd go along with it anyway..."

Seth was shaking his head, trying to reject everything that his father was saying. Obviously, he didn't want to see his brilliant plan go down the tubes. But Kirsten nodded. She could see what Sandy was getting at, and she had an idea.

"Seth, honey, how about this: we'll make it a charity event for Hoag Hospital. The Newpsies are used to that. They'll give the money to the hospital, and in return for the donations, the hospital will give your friend his arthroscopic surgery for free. It all comes out the same in the end."

Ryan asked, "Yeah? Do you think the hospital will go for that?"

"Sure, they've done stuff like that before."

Ryan and Seth looked at each other, doing that silent communication thing that they always did. Once they'd come to an agreement, Seth spoke up. "Yeah, okay, I guess. As long as we still get to do the Bar-Mitzvakkah."

Kirsten smiled indulgently at her son. "Of course."

Seth grinned back. "Great!" He looked at Ryan. "This is going to be so much fun!" But then Seth's smile faded and he looked down. "Better than mine..."

Ryan patted Seth on the back. "I wish I'd been there."

Kirsten raised her eyebrows. "Have you seen the pictures? We have a photo album..."

Ryan shrugged. "Sure."

Kirsten gave Seth a reassuring smile then led the family into the living room. She headed over to the bookcase where they kept their albums and pulled out the one for Seth's Bar Mitzvah. She handed it to Ryan. "Here you go."

"Thanks."

Ryan sat down and started looking at it. Seth sat down next to him and joined in. Kirsten took a quick look at the pictures herself, then shared a look with Sandy. They both knew that it had been a bad experience for Seth. What had been supposed to be the best time of his young life... Well, maybe this could make up for it.

Sandy cleared his throat. "Ryan, I'll get you a copy of the Torah for you to study – that's the Old Testament to you – and more information about what you'll need to do and what you can expect."

"Okay, thanks."

"Seth, do you still have that CD that Rabbi Gutterman made for you?"

Seth stood up. "Yeah. Somewhere." After a moment, he gestured towards the upstairs. "I think it's up in my room." He looked at Ryan. "Come on, buddy." Ryan stood up, still holding the album.

After Seth and Ryan disappeared upstairs, Kirsten turned to Sandy.

"I'll go see about getting this thing set up at the club. Maybe I'll get Julie to help me..."

"Sounds good." Sandy frowned. "So, you really think this thing can work?"

Kirsten shrugged. "Well, yeah, I mean, it's basically just another charity event. The Bar Mitzvah part can be just like the entertainment for the party." Kirsten looked at Sandy, concerned that would be offensive. "Is that okay?"

It was Sandy's turn to shrug. "Yeah, I guess. Since it's just honorary. It will give the Newpsies a little culture."

They shared a little smile, then Kirsten kissed Sandy on the cheek. "Okay. I should go."

"I'll finish up the decorating here while you're gone."

Kirsten responded, absentmindedly, "Great."

Her mind was already miles away, thinking about everything that needed to be done. She needed to talk Julie into helping, make arrangements with the hospital, make arrangements with the Newpsies at the club, print up brochures, arrange for decorations, hire a photographer, get flowers, ...

Kirsten grabbed her purse and keys and headed out the door. She had a lot to do.

* * *

Ryan sat on his bed, with his laptop on his lap, scouring the internet for information about Bar Mitzvahs. He was still trying to get a handle on this whole thing. Ryan sighed and put the computer to the side and picked up the Old Testament again. He should never have let Seth talk him into this. He was going to make total fool out of himself in front of the entire town, as if they didn't look at him askance already. 

He was relieved when Sandy came out to the pool house. "Hey, kid. How's it going?"

Ryan shrugged. "Fine, I guess." He sighed and laid the book down. "There's a lot to learn."

Sandy sat in the chair at the foot of the bed. "Don't worry about it too much. You'll do fine."

Ryan wasn't so sure. He wished he had Sandy's confidence.

Sandy settled into the chair. "Listen, I just wanted to explain about why I was against this at first. Becoming a Bar Mitzvah is one of the seminal events in a Jewish person's life –"

Ryan interrupted. "It was Seth's idea. I didn't really want to do it."

Sandy smiled. "I figured that."

Ryan hesitated for a moment before adding, "You know why he wants to do this, right? He wants a do-over for his own Bar Mitzvah. You know that nobody came because they all went to Luke's birthday party, right?"

Sandy raised his eyebrows. "Huh. Luke's birthday? I never knew why none of the kids who RSVP'ed showed up."

"Yeah."

Sandy leaned forward. "You know, you're performing quite the mitzvah for Seth, and for your friend Johnny, by doing this." At Ryan's confused look, Sandy smiled and explained. "Mitzvah in this case means any good deed, any act of human kindness."

"Um... Thanks." He'd have to remember that.

Sandy sat back again. "Anyway, as I was saying, I was against this at first because a Bar Mitzvah, like I said earlier, is a sacred religious service for Jewish boys and girls –"

"Right, I know. We shouldn't be doing this –" Ryan didn't want to offend Sandy all over again.

"But –" Sandy interrupted, "But, what Seth wants out of this – the party, the money, the dancing, the friends – that's not the religious part of a Bar Mitzvah. It has become traditional to do those things as part of the celebration, but they aren't central to it. So I'm fine with doing those things."

Ryan nodded slowly. Okay, that made sense.

Sandy continued, "As far as the religious ceremony goes..." Ryan held his breath and waited. "We're not going to do the real thing. That's why I'm okay with this now. You'll just do a little bit of it – what I explained to you before – and give Newport a little taste of Jewish culture. But it won't be real. We're not going to have a Rabbi, you're not going to dress in the sacred clothes, and so forth. So, just do what you can in the next twenty-four hours: study the Torah, listen to the CD. And, really, don't worry about getting everything perfect. Just do your best."

Ryan breathed a sigh of relief. "Yeah, okay." He could do that.

Sandy smiled at Ryan and stood up. "The other reason I came out here is to get a picture of you when you were younger. Kirsten sent me. It's a recent tradition to put out a large picture of the Bar Mitzvah boy for people to sign."

"Like at weddings?"

"Right. So I need a picture. Since you're older than usual, Kirsten thought it would be a good idea to use a picture of you at thirteen." Ryan was about to interrupt when Sandy held up his hand. "I know you may not have a picture of when you were exactly thirteen, but let's see what you have."

Ryan sighed. "Sure."

Ryan put his Bar Mitzvah stuff to the side and got up from the bed. He headed for the drawer where he kept his photo album. When he had come to Newport, he had brought no pictures with him, but now he had a little collection. Not only ones that had been taken since he'd been with the Cohens, but his mother had also sent some, and he had brought some back from his summer in Chino that Theresa's mother had given him.

Ryan took out the photo album and handed it to Sandy, who sat down on the edge of the bed and gestured for Ryan to sit down with him. After Ryan did that, Sandy opened the album and they looked through it. After considering and rejecting several pictures, Sandy picked up one of Ryan in a Little League uniform.

"How old are you here?"

"Um, nine, I think. Eight or nine."

"I didn't know you played baseball."

Ryan shrugged. "I only did Little League for a couple years."

"Did you get this one from Theresa?"

Ryan thought for a moment. "No, I think Mom sent it."

Sandy nodded, then studied the picture. "I like this one. Do you mind if we use it?"

"Um, sure, yeah, go ahead."

"Great."

Sandy closed the photo album and put it on the bed, then stood up. Ryan followed suit.

"Well, I'm off. I have to bring this picture to Kirsten, then I'm sure she'll have other errands for me."

Ryan took a quick look at all the books and stuff on his bed. "I guess I'd better get back to studying."

Sandy reached over and rubbed Ryan's arm for a moment. "You'll do fine. And if you have any questions, just ask Seth, or you can reach me on my cell."

"Okay."

Sandy nodded once more, and then headed back to the house. Ryan sighed and settled back on his bed and picked up the Torah again. He had a lot to do.

* * *

TBC 


	3. Chapter 3

**Title:** Chrismukkah With The Cohens  
**Disclaimer:** I own nothing related to _The O.C._. Not for profit.  
**Description:** A few missing Cohens+1 scenes from 3.10 _The Chrismukkah Bar Mitz-vahkkah.  
_**Beta Reader:** fredsmith518

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Seth sat in the family room, watching the videotape of his Bar Mitzvah for the fourth time. He sat, mesmerized. It's not like he was a masochist – okay, maybe he was sometimes, especially in regard to Summer – but in this case, that wasn't it. (He didn't think.) He just couldn't pull himself away.

Seth heard a noise, quickly looked around, then breathed a sigh of relief. There was nobody there. Thank Jesus and Moses. He _really_ didn't want anybody to see his Bar Mitzvah humiliation, especially Ryan (which is why he had turned it off quickly earlier when Ryan had come in from the pool house). Not that Ryan didn't already know about it, in some detail, thanks to his diarrhea of the mouth. But he wasn't kidding when he told Ryan that he'd only be able to see the video of it over his dead body (or something to that effect).

Seth watched for a few more minutes, cringing at his 13-year-old self sitting alone at the table, his only "friends" being his parents. Yeah, Seth nodded to himself, he was definitely glad that he'd snuck into his parents' bedroom way back when and snagged the videotape and hidden it where nobody would find it. It hadn't seen the light of day since (well, until today, of course). He figured that his parents probably knew that he had it, because they never mentioned it being missing. Seth sighed. Well, that was good anyway. That they never brought it up, that is.

The sight on the video of himself dancing with his mom to _That's What Friends Are For_ caught his eye. He groaned and reached for the remote to shut off the embarrassing sight, but just couldn't push the button. He watched, frozen, until _YMCA_ came on, and he saw his younger self dancing with his dad. As Summer would say, _Ew_. Nobody should ever have to witness Sandy Cohen dancing to _YMCA_.

Seth heard another noise from the kitchen behind him, but ignored it, figuring it was probably nothing again. But then he heard a second noise, at which point he turned around, only to find his mother watching him watching the tape. Seth was immediately embarrassed and could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks.

"Mom!"

Seth tried to quickly stop the tape, but he was so flustered he hit the wrong button and just paused it instead, leaving a picture on the TV of himself looking embarrassed about seeing his dad dancing to _YMCA_.

Seth turned back around to look at his mother. "What – How long have you been standing there?"

She looked at him sympathetically. "Just for a minute."

His mom walked around the couch and sat down next to him, putting her arm around his shoulders and pulling him close.

"I'm so sorry, sweetie." Seth snuggled into his mother, like he used to do when he was little. "I know it was a horrible experience for you."

Seth looked up at her. "Mom, it wasn't your fault that none of the kids showed up. I know you tried. I know you invited everyone –"

His mother shook her head and squeezed him tighter. "No, your dad and I should have made sure it would be a good experience for you. It was an important time in your life." She looked down and sighed. "I'm sorry. I should have listened to The Nana and let her throw you your Bar Mitzvah in New York. Then you would have had your cousins, aunts and uncles, people from The Nana's synagogue..."

Seth didn't know what to say to that. She was right, of course. The Nana had offered, and his father had argued for it, but his mother had been opposed to it. She wanted it here, at home, in Newport. He himself was torn. He would have liked to have his cousins there, but if there was a chance that they could get Summer Roberts to come...

Seth sighed and sat up. He put his arm around his mother's shoulders to comfort her, like his mom did for him earlier. "That's okay, Mom. And now I get a do-over. I get to rewrite history with Ryan's Bar Mitzvakkah. It's going to be _awesome_."

His mom smiled at him. "Best Chrismukkah Ever?"

Seth smiled back. "You betcha!"

His mom laughed. After a moment, she looked around at all the Chrismukkah decorations. "Looks nice in here. Your dad did a good job."

Seth feigned insult. "Hey, I helped!"

Kirsten smiled and kissed her son on his cheek. "And you did a very good job, honey."

Seth wiped off his cheek in an exaggerated gesture. "Mo-o-om!"

His mother chuckled at his melodrama, and responded in kind with an insincere, "Sorry."

After a moment, she stood up. "So, I was going to order something for dinner. Your father will be home soon. I know Ryan's out with Marissa, so what do you think? Thai?"

Seth also stood up. "Um, actually, I was going to eat with Summer. She spent all afternoon Christmas tree shopping with her dad, so..."

His mother nodded. "Okay, sweetie. Well, have a good time."

Seth started to leave, but found himself pulled into a hug first. He hugged his mother back, willing himself not to tear up when she started rubbing his back with her hand. He did manage to hold it together until he was able to pull away, giving her a sad smile.

"Thanks."

Then Seth ducked his head and headed off to meet up with his girlfriend.

* * *

By the time Sandy got home from his Bar-Mitzvakkah-related errands, the Thai food that Kirsten had ordered was ready and waiting for him. He broke into a big smile when he walked into the kitchen and found his wife emptying the food from the containers into serving bowls. He went right over and kissed her on the cheek. 

"Looks good, honey. Where are the boys?"

"Ryan's out with Marissa, and Seth's with Summer."

Sandy chuckled. "I should have guessed. Just you and me, then?"

He wiggled his eyebrows, gave her a sly grin, and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her to him. He planted a big fat one square on her lips. Kirsten giggled as she extracted herself from his grip.

"Sandy! The food!" She gave him a sly grin back. "We'll have plenty of time for that later."

Sandy gave her a playful "Grrr" and kissed her once more before heading over to set the table. Shortly the two of them sat down to eat, Kirsten frowning a bit as she sat down.

"I guess this is what it is going to be like next year, huh? Just us every night?"

Sandy reached over and took her hand. "It will be all right, honey. We'll just have to make the most of the time we do have with them."

Kirsten nodded and gave him a bit of a smile, obviously trying to put on a brave face.

After a moment of quietly eating, Sandy offered, "I got a chance to talk with Ryan today. You know, when I got the picture. It was nice."

"And I got a chance to talk to Seth. I guess we got our one-on-ones after all, huh? Or at least, half of them."

Sandy gave her an encouraging smile, but then she gave a little sigh and continued. "Poor kid. He was watching the video of his Bar Mitzvah. Did you know that he wanted Ryan to have one so he could have a do-over, so he could rewrite his own history?"

Sandy nodded slowly. "Yeah, Ryan told me. Did you know that the reason why the kids didn't come to Seth's Bar Mitzvah was because Luke had his birthday party the same day?"

Kirsten raised her eyebrows. "No, I didn't. Well, that explains a few things." She lowered her eyes, looking a little ashamed. "Oh god, Sandy, I just... I should've let your mother throw him the Bar Mitzvah in New York, like you wanted."

Sandy reached across the table and held her hand again. "Oh, baby, don't be so hard on yourself. You couldn't have known how it would turn out. I understand why you wanted it here, and I'm sure Seth does, too. This is your home – our home – and you just wanted Seth to have his coming of age in his hometown. I'm sure he doesn't blame you."

Kirsten shrugged and went back to eating.

After a moment, Sandy picked up the conversation on a lighter note, hoping to get Kirsten back into the good mood she was in a few minutes earlier. "So... um... I finished the decorations here in the house, with Seth's help, of course."

Kirsten looked up with some amusement on her face. Sandy smiled to himself, that was better. "Yes, I saw. Very nice. And Seth made sure I knew he helped."

Sandy smiled. Sounded just like Seth. "Of course."

"Of course."

"Oh, um, also, I didn't put anything in the pool house. I wasn't sure what you were thinking or what Ryan would want..." Sandy shrugged.

Kirsten nodded thoughtfully. "We'll have to check with him, but I was thinking just a small potted tree on the kitchen island or something."

"Sounds good."

They went back to eating, continuing their dinnertime conversation. It was mostly light-hearted, but Sandy could see Kirsten still get a bit sad every so often. He sighed. This holiday season was hard on her. The last one with the boys, the first one without her father. Well, he and the boys would just have to do their best to make it the Best Chrismukkah Ever.

* * *

Kirsten sat on the couch in the family room, smiling as she looked around at her family. Her husband and her boys. She sighed with contentment as she ate another bite of her ice cream. They were all exhausted after the Bar-Mitzvakkah, but had enough energy left to spend a little time together before heading off to bed, drinking coffee or eggnog, munching on ice cream or apple pie, or whatever else they had in the refrigerator. 

"This was nice, wasn't it?" Kirsten started, getting everyone's attention. "I mean, you know, working as a family, doing something nice, for the hospital, and for a boy in need?"

Sandy gave Kirsten a big smile. "You are so right, Kirsten." He looked specifically at Ryan. "And, Ryan, you did great. I told you that you could do it."

Ryan smiled back and ducked his head. He looked a little embarrassed at the praise, even after all this time. Kirsten wasn't sure if he'd ever be able to accept a compliment gracefully.

"Thanks. But..." He looked back up at Sandy and frowned a little. "I was so nervous. I didn't embarrass myself too much, did I?"

Kirsten answered for Sandy, reassuring Ryan, "No, sweetie, you were wonderful. We're so proud of you."

Seth joined in, "Yeah, man, it was awesome."

Ryan gave Seth a little smile and nod in response.

Sandy asked Seth, "So, did tonight live up to your expectations?"

Seth grinned and nodded excitedly, leaning forward in his seat. Kirsten smiled at her son. It was nice to see him happy and excited after being so sad yesterday.

"It was so great. Everyone dancing to _That's What Friends Are For_ and everything! Even Dr. Roberts and Julie Cooper joined in! It was _awesome_." Seth sat back a little. "Although, you know, I still think we should have gotten Herkel, The Jewish Clown, at least then he could have provided the entertainment until Ryan showed up..."

Seth looked pointedly at Ryan, clearly indicating that he was expecting Ryan to explain where he went. Kirsten was curious, too, so they all waited for Ryan to speak.

Ryan looked around at the family kind of nervously. "Um... well... Johnny was having kind of a... _crisis_, I guess you could say, and I had to... um... help him... out of it. But, I got back as soon as I could, so..."

Sandy looked at Ryan reassuringly. "It's okay. And, it's a good thing that you came when you did. Otherwise I might have had to break out the show tunes."

Everyone laughed.

Ryan raised his eyebrows and looked around. "What did you guys do while I was gone?"

Seth and Sandy frowned. Kirsten couldn't blame them, after the reception they had gotten from the Newpsies.

After a moment, Sandy replied, "Nothing much. Told some stories. Sang some songs. Nothing interesting." Sandy cleared his throat, smiled, and looked directly at Ryan. "Nothing compared to what you did tonight. You're a real man now, and, you know, I don't think I'll have to explain to you what _mensch_ means after all... I think you know already."

Ryan gave Sandy a pleased smile and ducked his head, again, concentrating on finishing his ice cream.

Kirsten exchanged a pleased look with Sandy. The evening had definitely gone well. Ryan was happy, Seth was happy, their friend was going to get his surgery, and Kirsten herself was over her holiday blues. Chrismukkah definitely had twice the resistance of any ordinary holiday.

Shortly, everyone finished their snacks, exchanged hugs, and headed off to get all snug in their beds.

Happy Chrismukkah to all, and to all a good night.

* * *

**The End **


End file.
